Because Of You
by CurseOfTheEnder
Summary: Because of you, I have lost a piece of my soul. Because I've never met you, my world is barren and bleak. Because of my aching heart, I wish to see you. But tell me, why is it that because of you, I'm breaking? (Merome.)
1. Prologue:

**(There will be slow updates for this book.)**

 **Prologue:**

As a child, you treasure the luscious greens and dancing blues, the colors that mean something- that make memories. But once your childhood is over, all of those colors disappear. A part of you is stolen and nothing can be done about it. It's just how life works. Because you forget how easily something precious can be taken from you. You forget how easily things can change…

Once you're 14, you're life will change forever. Unless, of course, you've found your reason to keep the colors. A reason the colors would always look bright and new. And that reason is love. True love. Everyone has a soul mate, and once you've turned 14, if you haven't met each other, you'll feel a pain so tremendous that it'll be scarred into your mind forever. The pain of losing the world around you. Because once those candle lights die, it's over. But everyone still has their chance.

You can find your soul mate- find each other and fall in love, revive the wondrous colors and bring life back to the world around you. Give the world a reason to be colorful again. Well, I shouldn't say everyone has a chance… Some people never meet their soul mate because their soul mate is already dead. I don't understand how those people could live life without colors- without true beauty and joy! I'll never understand…


	2. Chapter 1:

**Chapter 1:**

I know why you're here. You're here for the story. The story I'm about to tell you. Some of you will find it rather charming. Others may not find it that way. However you choose to take this story, understand that it's my story. And you can't change it no matter how much you want too.

Let's see here… My name is Jerome. Jerome Aceti. I'm a 21 year old bacca; I grew up in the forest with my village friends and family. Nowadays I live in a peaceful cottage on top of a cliff, somewhat isolated from the nearby town I'm technically apart of. The sunsets are always beautiful, the river sparkling and the scent of fresh water filling my lungs. But you aren't here for the details over the here and now, so I'll stop myself before I rush ahead. Where should I start…? How about the beginning?

When I was young, I lived in one of the many different bacca villages. They were all close together, so it was more like the bacca empire if you ask me. Everyone knew everyone, that's how our people manage. Every child is taught the same way and tested for strength, agility, and smarts. We're a very excepting race and could care less about how you choose to act. It's you! Of course, we are a society; therefore we do follow the rules like everyone else. The only difference is the fact we don't have curfews or guards constantly guarding our little "empire". We're secluded in the forest, though sometimes we do get people passing through.

Growing up there were some of the best years of my life. Everyone loved each other in a brotherly, sisterly manor, and no one was ever excluded. Hell, we could be in the middle of game and would start over just so the other person could join us. Every day was a new adventure. I spent the first 8 years of my life with my neighborhood friends, some of them twice my age while others could have been younger than I was. No one cared. Because it wasn't your age, weight, name, height, or any of those things that were judged. No one was ever judged, and if a fight started, it'd be over in a minute flat before the people fighting made up like nothing had happened. That's how close everyone is.

My father had an excellent job when I was growing up. He gifted me a suit one year and I still have it. It's been fixed up so many times, but I won't get rid of it, I can just get someone to make it bigger if I need. No, I wore that suit every day I could, I had a few of them, I still do have a few of them, don't get me wrong here. It's the most comfortable suit in the world. My friends all thought it was amazing, but I'm getting off topic again. Let's see… Right, so my dad had an amazing job in one of the major cities of MineCraftia. It paid a major amount, as you can imagine, and everyone in the village was proud of my father. I was too.

Then, one day when I was 9, my father came home, as happy as ever, though… concerned, I think. He asked to speak to my mom privately, so I went back outside to find my friends. They talked and talked for nearly an hour, and thinking something was wrong, I went home and called out for them. Their hushed conversation stopped and my mother was nearly instantly in the front room. I had tilted my head, staring at her, worried.

"Sweet heart, what's wrong?" She had soothing asked, kneeling down in front of me.

"Why are you and dad talking so much?" Her expression fell slightly, and I knew the look she was giving me, but she stood up again, smiling down at me to try and hide it. She had been keeping something from me.

"Um… Honey?" At mom's call, dad came into the room, confused looking. She nervously laughed, walking over to him and motioning to me. "Tell Jerome what you told me." Dad gave me a smile, though he still looked nervous.

"Jerome, I got a promotion." He announced. I smiled. No, I didn't understand at the time why they made a huge deal about it, and unfortunately, I was about to receive an answer. "And now I'm being relocated to Spawn City- my job, I mean. My job is being relocated." And at those few words, my face fell.

"You're leaving…?" He chuckled slightly.

"No, of course not." At that I once again smiled.

"Oh, ok. I'm going to go play." I turned, opening the front door.

"Jerome, we're moving." He called. I remember hearing those words and my entire world had just shattered. I remember going up to him and asking why? I begged- I didn't want to leave! My entire life was in our bacca empire, why would I want to leave? Leave behind all of my friends? Leave behind my house? The streets I know like the back of my hand? I cried and begged to him- sobbed my little 8 year old heart out. But nothing worked. What about school, I had questioned? My studies? I may have been 8, but school was a fun time for me. I didn't have "teachers", I had friends. All of the teachers were my friends- friends with all the students. And the fighting class! I was a star student in that class. All I knew about our fighting class was that they didn't teach you that in the MineCraftia schools. I'd be losing my favorite class, my friends and family, my _life_. All for some dumb old job?

My dad was as hard as a rock; he wouldn't break to tears, not like mom. I knew that, and yet I still tried for 10 straight minutes. But by the end of the night I was sobbing face down on my bed in my dark room, my clothing and anything I couldn't live without packed up and ready to leave. Tomorrow.

At the time, I honestly couldn't believe it was happening, but sure enough, it happened. I haven't been home in a while… I should go home… No, I think I'll stay at my cottage for now. That's the first piece to my story. "The Tragic Beginning" of it. It even brought a faint smile to my face, how pleasant. What should I talk about next…?


	3. Chapter 2:

**(Okay, I'm** ** _SO_** **sorry that this chapter is so fucking short but it's literally just supposed to them arriving at their new house and I didn't know what else to add, so yeah, I'm lazy, deal with it.)**

 **Chapter 2:**

I'm glad you're intrigued so far. Well, let's pick up where we left off, shall we?

I remember the house being slightly cramped compared to what I was used too. It was 2 stories tall, with a kitchen, a dining room, a living room, 2 bedrooms, a study, which could also be considered a small little library, 2 bathrooms, a laundry room, and a guest room. It didn't look anything like our old house back in the Bacca Empire. In fact, we lived in the town of GreatWood. All the houses were _inside_ trees. I barely even saw a tree within the city limits. My dad assured me I'd love it here, taking mom and I into the house for the first time. Mom didn't seem too worried, and I guess it was alright. The house was already furnished, and when Dad told me the bedrooms were upstairs, that was my immediate destination. I didn't bother with any other rooms, because I was just tired at this point. My head throbbed from a pounding headache, and my back was stiff from falling asleep in an awkward position during the car ride.

After a quick, brief glance at all the rooms upstairs, I claimed the bedroom closest to the front of the house, the one across the upstairs bathroom. Immediately beginning to unpack, I organized all of my clothing into the 3 drawer dresser, decorated a small desk with some of my personal belongings, and simply made the room feel a bit more… like home. The walls in my room were painted a beautiful pale blue, the flooring made of spruce. By the time my decorating spree was finished, a yawn escaped my lips, a knock sounding on my door.

"Jerome?" My dad's voice was mellow, my mother's humming just barely audible from down the hall. I turned to look at him, staring as he lightly smiled, approaching. "I'm sorry this is so sudden. I know you didn't want to come." I remember his face having a weary look about it, as if he'd gotten no sleep whatsoever. I just smiled back.

"It's okay!" I'd cheerfully assured, another yawn escaping my lips soon after. He'd chuckled slightly, picking me up and laying me down in my bed. The bedspread was a pure white, edged with a black trimming, while the pillows were fully black and the sheets white, tucked in around the mattress. The bed frame was made of a beautiful wood, stained black.

"I'm so glad we have such an understanding little bacca." My dad kissed my forehead and dismissed himself, leaving me to fall asleep, though I didn't sleep long, only about an hour or so. When I woke up again, at first, I was a bit confused. Until I remember we were in our new "home". So, I got up and made my way downstairs, plenty of light still pouring in from outside as familiar things floated around in different places. Paintings, pots, blankets, pictures, all different things that I saw back in our old home. My mother had been in the living room, working on paperwork by the looks of it.

"Mom!" I'd cheerfully started, rushing over. She looked to me and smiled brightly, setting everything aside to scoop me up and spin me around, causing my small form to giggle.

"How is my little bacca?"

"Good!"

"That's great. Hey, you start school tomorrow, are you excited?" I had nodded eagerly. "I figured you would be; now how about we get something to eat? I don't know about you, but I'm starving!"

Yeah, our arrival went by rather smoothly, smoother than I thought at least. Hmn… I guess that next I should tell you about my first experience at a Minecraftian school, right? That'll be fun to explain.


	4. Chapter 3:

**(Much longer chapter for you guys! Enjoy!)**

 **Chapter 3:**

Well, I see that you're rather interested in learning about my first school experience outside of the tribes, so, I'll jump right into the story.

My father dropped me off at this large building. There was nature around, so that was rather comforting, and kids of all ages piling into the three different sets of doors at the front of said building. For once, I was unsure about school. Sure, I loved it, and I always would, but… Something about this place just made me want to stay home. I didn't say anything, of course, just said goodbye and got out of the car.

I stood there until my dad's vehicle disappeared from my view and blended with the traffic of the cramped city, then turned back towards the building and started towards it. The closer I drew, the more uncomfortable I had begun to feel. I didn't feel… welcomed. Everyone was casting weird looks my way, almost as if they'd been disgusted by me. Honestly, now that I look back upon it, it makes sense. I was the only bacca there. I was the only one who _wasn't_ human.

Upon entering the building, the people parted away from me like the banks of a river. My stomach had begun to turn and for once I wasn't looking forward to school. I'd never been exposed to a hatful environment before and I didn't like it- who would? I turned a corner, searching for the principal's office, already completely lost in the huge building. That was when I witnessed some small, scrawny kid get shoved to the ground, his stuff going everywhere. No one moved to help him- in fact, everyone would rather laugh at him. They laughed as the kids who pushed him called him names- hit him- kicked him- beat him in every way they could muster- mentally _and_ physically. I was the only one who seemed to care.

"Leave him alone!" It took 3 words to silence the entire hallway. 3 words earned me disgusted looks. 3 words got me shoved towards the jerks beating on the defenseless kid.

"Look everyone; it's an idiot who wandered out of his tree!" One of the 3 had declared, pointing. I wasn't offended, just confused. _Why am I an idiot?_

"Want us to stop-?"

"Make us, wimp." One of the 3 guys walked towards me, standing in front of me, smug looking. He had about 3 inches on me and looked rather tough for someone who was 10. So what did I do? I punched him square in the jaw, tackled him to the ground, and beat the ever-loving shit out of him.

Bacca's are known to be territorial, and when challenged we never disappoint. After all, we're raised from birth to be able to handle our own weight, and fighting in packs increases our threat level. The kid may not have known it at the time, but you can't treat a bacca of any age like a normal human. We may walk on two legs and speak just like everyone else, but we _are_ animals. Body language is a big key in how you challenge us.

Let's take horses for example. If a horse bites another horse, it can represent one of two things. Either that horse is challenging the dominance of the other, or it's simply being playful and the bite wasn't a bite at all, but a nip, like a puppy biting its sibling's ear. If the horse is challenging the other and turns its back, it's a sign of disrespect, and as you can imagine that doesn't turn out well.

In my situation, I was the horse being challenged and the dude turned his back to me. He disrespected me and my kind and that _never_ turns out well. Don't get me wrong, I know my manners and I understand when I've overstepped my bound, but I was young and it was the first time something of that sort happened to me.

It wasn't long before I had him pinned underneath me, and when I said "beat the ever-loving shit out of him", I meant it. He had a black eye, bruises, and a busted lip by the time he was crying. Now, considering I was raised harmless, that's when I stopped, having pinned him with an angry look.

" _Don't_ challenge me- _ever_." After that I stood up and dusted myself off as the kid got up and ran off, his friends following. Everyone else had simply frozen in place, not moving and watching as I began to gather up the kid's stuff. The kid on the floor looked utterly terrified, though I didn't notice until I was standing over him, waiting for him to get up. My ears gave a slight twitch, soon pointing down towards him, waiting for a reaction.

His vision met mine and our gazes locked, and nearly instantly, he'd understood that I meant him no harm whatsoever. So as a weak smile made its way to his face, he'd reached up and taken my hand, allowing me to pull him to his feet, both of us smiling now. He timidly took his stuff and soon, the halls had emptied and we were just standing there, staring at each other like idiots.

"Uh… My name's Mitch." He outstretched his hand and I took it, gladly shaking it.

"I'm Jerome, I just moved here."

"What classes do you have?"

"I don't know, I need to find the principal's office." Mitch then quickly offered to help me and I accepted, realizing I had made a new friend… So Mitch quickly showed me the way to the principal's office and there I met with the lady who gave me my class list, then gave us both notes and sent us on our way. Mitch and I were quick to examine the list and he was extremely excited when he noticed we had all the same classes together. And then he noticed my frowning.

"Jerome? What's wrong?"

"There isn't a fighting class on here…" I knew deep down that I wouldn't have one anymore, but I didn't want to accept it. So, in the end, I disappointed myself by thinking I'd have one for whatever reason.

"The Minecraftian schools don't teach us how to fight, but you can take classes outside of school for that. My parents said I could sign up for one once I start middle school next year!" I looked to him, and then smiled, nodding.

"I'll join with you then!" Even back then, I could already tell we'd be the best of friends. Even back then…

The day went by rather quickly, and at the end of the day Mitch was following me out the front doors, almost as if he were a lost little puppy. I didn't mind though, I'd found it both amusing and sweet. My mother had been waiting in the parking lot for me, and couldn't even begin to contain her smile when she'd seen Mitch.

"Well hello there, what's your name?"

"I'm Mitch!"

"Well I'm Mrs. Aceti, but you can call me mom if you want." My mother had always been that kind of mom that basically adopts you. Even if we'd just met, and my mother introduced herself to you, she'd tell you: "Call me mom." Mitch didn't hesitate to reply, calling her "mom". All of my friends back at home thought of her as a second mom- in fact, most of every mother bacca back at home would adopt every other person's child.

We hopped into the car and talked the entire drive home, my mother joining the conversation and Mitch not even caring. Mitch talked to her like he would me. Mitch had this flexible, excepting personality, and I guess that's what made him so interesting to me… When we made it back our new house, we went inside, my dad sitting in the living room. He had the same reaction to Mitch that my mother had. He didn't say: "Call me dad", but Mitch called him dad anyway, causing my father to simply grin.

"Oh, Jerome, I have something for you." My dad pulled a cell phone out of his back pocket, handing it to me and explaining why he wanted me to have one. "The cities big and your mother keeps saying you'll get kidnapped or something, so our numbers are in there already. You can use it however you want." Nearly instantly, I had Mitch's number in my phone, and Mitch, who apparently had a phone and neglected to share that information with me earlier, had my number in his. After that, we started doing our homework together, my- _our_ mom making us snacks as we did so. When we had finished, I dragged him up to my room, putting my school stuff away as he answered his phone, talking to his parents and explaining where he was. I then proceeded to ask him to spend the night. His parents said yes and mine did too, of course.

So we spent the entire day together, talking, messing around, and having fun in general. Towards the end of the night, as we both grew tired, we both lied down in my bed and just stared at each other for a while, until Mitch yawned and curled up into me. I had snuggled up with him, not bothering with a blanket, and soon we both peacefully fell asleep in each other's arms.

Anyway… That was my first day of school, and the first new friend I made… I'm not crying- let's just continue, alright? I know where we can pick up. 7th grade, when stuff started changing.


	5. Chapter 4:

**Chapter 4:**

Anyway, uh… Let's, uh, get right into the story…

By the time I was in the 7th grade, I was 12, turning 13 before the school year would end. I'd spent 2 years in this new environment, and was accustom to its weird ways. Mitch, whose full name was apparently Mitchell, was still my best friend, and nothing could change that. Our birthdays were only 6 days apart, so we celebrated together. We took about half our classes in school together, plus the fighting class after school. In a strange way, it was almost as if the universe had given me a twin brother.

We loved the same stuff, ate the same things, acted the same way… You'd think it'd get kind of boring, having a friend like that. It was actually comforting, because no matter how much we acted alike, we'd always have new, weird, interesting stuff to talk about, but we still understood each other perfectly.

Mitch and I were the top fighters in our fighting class, it was actually surprising. Not for me, but for Mitch. My small, scrawny best friend had started to grow in so many different ways, mentally and physically. I grew too, but I more so began to buff out, not get taller. Mitch, however, was getting to be rather tall, and his appearance? Let's just say he was always the frog, and then suddenly, he'd turned into a prince. I must admit, back then, girls weren't the only ones falling head over heels for him, there were actually quite a few guys that were interested in him as well, including myself. However, I had been content with our friendship and didn't want to risk losing it.

Mitch's second home was my house. He still called my mother mom and my father dad, and they still treated him like an adopted son. However, my parents… Well, they both have great jobs, don't get me wrong. Their jobs pay well and never seem to get a hold of them. But I did begin to notice that they were starting to get consumed by them. One of the things that bugged me was the fact that, even if they promised we'd go back and visit our hometown every summer, their jobs began to prevent that, and they didn't even notice. They didn't think anything of it when they told me we'd go next week. And the next week. And the next week… In fact, every week until the end of the summer, they said that.

It isn't that it upset me, it's just that… Well, I wanted to go back, it had just been a bit disappointing. What I found out made me get over it though. _Oh_ how my attitude changed. I didn't want to leave anymore. All because I found out. I caught him.

One night that Mitch was sleeping over, he'd gotten out of bed- yes, we still slept together. Now, the only reason I noticed he had gotten up was because I was actually still awake- I couldn't sleep. The fact that we weren't going back to our hometown just made my mind race. Mitch hadn't muttered a word and quietly left, heading directly across the hall and straight into the bathroom. I didn't want to follow at first, not until the faint scent of blood caught my attention. So I got up and walked over, knocking on the door and listening as he cussed himself out, whether startled by the fact I was awake still or scared of what I'd think, I'm still not sure, even to this day. I walked in and found a bloody razor on the sink, a towel wrapped tightly to Mitch's wrist, and a crying Mitch, who was sitting on the ground in the corner, staring at me.

I never asked why, never asked how, just simply shut the bathroom door behind me and got down on the ground, going through the sink cabinet to eventually pull out bandages. I proceeded to grab some stuff to clean the cut up with and had turned to him. Willingly, he'd handed over his wrist and allowed me to help him, and in minutes the cut was cleansed and wrapped up tightly. Like I said before, I didn't know why or how it happened. I didn't know how long it had been going on, but by the looks of it, it didn't seem to be much at all, seeing as there were only 2 other cuts. We met gazes and he gave me the same weak little smile he had when we first met. I'd smiled back and pulled him into a hug, listening to his shaky breathing while smoothing down his hair.

"Never again?" I had requested.

"Never again." He'd assured me. And it never happened again. I'd check, and Mitch wouldn't care. He generally seemed to become happy again. So I didn't worry about it much. He wasn't afraid to let the scars show either, seeing as after a while they began to fade.

My mother took notice of them, but didn't ask Mitch about it. She asked me when he wasn't around one day. That's when my father found out as well. It was hard to explain what had happened, but even with my lack of knowledge over the situation, they understood and never mentioned it to Mitch. And speaking of Mitch, now that I think about it… I still don't know why he did it…

Well, there isn't really much to tell of my middle school life, so… Let's move on, okay? Hmn… I know where to pick up. My 14th birthday.


	6. Chapter 5:

**(OKAY! When BOY is finished, do you guys want another purely/soully book, a book dedicated to one ship, or do you want another multiple book, a book with multiple shippings? Let me know in a reply! Thanks!)**

 **Chapter 5:**

Well, I won't stall. Let's get right into the story.

By the time my 14th birthday was coming around, my parents jobs had become easier to manage and they seemed happier than ever before. Less time on paperwork, more time with Mitch and me, and generally, they got to sit back and relax while still earning a hefty paycheck.

Mitch and I were both thrilled, and yet terrified of our 14th birthdays. We didn't want to lose our colors, and yet, we also wanted to find our soul mates. My parents were getting very excited. They had planned a whole trip for us to go back home during my birthday, for us to stay there awhile and see if we can't find my soul mate- they were going overboard, but I'd never seen them that happy before! They'd already had it planned out for me to switch schools for the time I'm there and for us to stay there for 1 week and 2 days. Honestly, I kind of wanted to stay in Spawn City. I mean, human girls are pretty too, and they can be caring, right? I didn't argue though, I was excited to go back home! Though, I'll admit, I was worried to leave Mitch behind, just… considering.

So the first thing I did was call up Mitch, seeing as his parents had wanted him home that day, and told him about it. He was perfectly fine with me leaving- in fact his parents had wanted him home to tell him that they'd be going to visit family and friends of family during that time anyway. They wanted Mitch to find his soul mate as much as my parents did me. So, the next day at school, we spent as much time together as possible, and hugged each other tightly before departing our separate ways, and we didn't forget to wish each other happy birthday either! My parents had decided to come pick me up after school, despite the fact I usually walked, and off we went to our hometown of GreatWood- _just_ like that!

We got there around 8pm, and upon getting out of the car, my friends were already swarming me, messing with me, jumping on me- anything you can imagine and they were doing it, right in that moment! I stole a glance at my parents, and they motioned for us to run off and just have fun. So, with my friends of all ages, I took off and didn't come home until midnight. When I _did_ come home, I went straight to bed and fell asleep, utterly worn the hell out.

When morning had come, I got up, dressed, and hurried downstairs. I had school after all, and I was excited. I was finally returning to a bacca school after 4 long years! The day went by as one of the best days of my life, in fact I was having such a blast that I completely forgot to call Mitch and wish him a happy birthday- that day _was_ his real birthday after all. Mitch never tried to contact me and I completely forgot to try and contact him. The next 6 days, life was perfect. The cool, brisk air was a soothing temperature I'd missed dearly, and most of my friends, the ones that were older than me, had found their soul mates. It gives me hope that I'll find mine, and if my soul mate isn't here, they'll certainly be in the city, right? I mean, it isn't weird for bacca's to have human soul mates; it's rather common, just like a bacca having a bacca soul mate, you just don't tend to see it often, as most bacca's like to live in the forest.

So, with all my friends around me, as well as my parents, I made a wish, and blew out my candles. At first, nothing happened. Nothing. At. All. I glanced around, smiling like an idiot, just meeting the gazes of each of my friends. And then, as if an explosion had gone off right next to me, my vision flashed white, and every single color I ever loved had faded to a grayscale. It must have shown on my face, because every one of my friends was hugging me, soothing me. So, after relaxing into the arms of my friends and giving a weak smile back to them, they all had pulled away and ushered me outside. We spent the rest of the day walking around the empire, trying to see if my soul mate wasn't here. The entire time, however, my mind was lost in thought about Mitch. Had he been suffering the same fate, just simply longer? Well, after another day full of school and soul mate searching, my parents and I packed our bags, said goodbye, and went back to Spawn City, having left around… 8am the next day.

After the 5 hour drive home, we were all back inside the slightly cramped house, putting away our stuff, or I was at least. My parents had pushed aside their unpacking so that they could relax. Well, mom had started making lunch, but still. I remember my father answering the knock at the door 15 minutes later, Mitch's voice quiet from up here. Mitch had been sent upstairs to find me, and with my back to the door I was reorganizing my desk, listening to his footsteps. When the door opened, I turned, seeing his tired expression. His tired expression had turned to shock, as did my happy one.

His eyes were hazel. Not grey. _Hazel_.

Just staring at him, I felt butterflies in my stomach; my skin was crawling- in a good way. My heart had started pounding and suddenly I just felt utterly… helpless. I hadn't even realized my colors had begun to returned- _or_ that I was smiling like an over happy idiot. I didn't comprehend Mitch's quick approach until he was right in front of me- and I didn't realize he was kissing me until he'd pushed me against the wall. _Kissing me_. When I had finally snapped out of my daze, I'd quickly cupped his cheeks and pulled him closer, having begun to trace his bottom lip with my tongue. Not one thought had crossed my mind about what my parents would think. About what our friends would think. Nothing. Because at the time I could've cared less. Out of breath, we both had pulled away, staring into each other's eyes with joyful smiles.

"Hey…" Mitch had quietly mumbled.

"Hey…" I'd mumbled back with a chuckle. Mitch's hands had me by the waist and mine had him by the face. We just stood there, lost in each other's gaze, not a care in the world. Mitch had been cautious, hesitant in a way- though so was I. This was new for us. We were best friends and acted like it, and neither of us had ever been truly in love before- neither of us ever had a girlfriend! _Ever!_ Mitch leaned in again, pausing before lightly brushing his lips to mine, our lips remaining still. We both closed our eyes and pressed our lips firmly together, having begun to gently moving them in sync, caught in a simple bliss we hadn't wanted to be saved from.

"Kids!" We'd both jumped at my mother's ringing voice, looking towards the door, but no one was there. "Lunch is ready!" We'd both lightly chuckled, Mitch's face lightly tinted pink. He turned back to me and pecked my cheek, then grabbed my wrist and dragged me along with him.

On our way downstairs, I'd slipped my hand into Mitch's, intertwining our fingers as he glanced back at me, smiling. We entered the kitchen to find my dad already eating and my mother placing 2 plates down across from them. They'd both smiled at us. We smiled back, barely an inch apart, just standing there. A slightly confused look swept across my mom's face, though she was still smiling nonetheless.

"Are you boys going to sit down and eat with us?" She'd asked as she sat down next to my father.

"We're soul mates." I'd been blunt and straight forward about it- I wasn't worried about what they'd say. Some of my male friends back home had male soul mates, and my parents were totally excepting of it! My mother's face had lit up and she'd shot from her chair like a rocket, having us engulfed in a hug in seconds. She'd kissed both of our cheeks, ranting on about how now, Mitch _was_ her son. Son-in-law. In hindsight, we knew it was true, but it still caused Mitch to pale, and both of us to get slightly uncomfortable. We were sat down in our seats, my mother starting to interrogate us while my dad just ate, amused and not stopping her. Not until she asked who would top. That was when he started to choke on his food, laughing. He told my- _our_ mom to stop and let us eat.

At that point, Mitch and I were both too uncomfortable to eat, so instead we dismissed ourselves to my room and just hung out. Later that night, however, after skipping out on dinner too, we came downstairs, my parents in the living room. They'd watched us go into the kitchen, but didn't follow, my father keeping my mom at bay so we could have some time to ourselves. We got out what was left over from dinner and had set ourselves up at the table, sitting next to each other- as closely as possible. In fact, we were sharing a plate. At the time, however, we weren't being romantic; we were just too lazy to make another plate, seeing as only one was made. So, we just stacked a bit of extra food onto it and called it a meal.

Mitch and I ate in silence, however at the time I'd had the strangest feeling my mother was watching us, but I didn't call her out on it or anything, I could've cared less. Not a word was spoken between us as we consumed our meal, and when everything but one small chunk of fish- did I mention my mother cooked up some fish to celebrate finding our soul mates? Well, she did. Once everything but one small chunk of fish was left, I didn't bother taking it. At the time, Mitch looked rather thin anyways, and he was the one that loved food, so I just figured. Mitch didn't question me, just gentle stabbed the chuck of meat with his fork. And fed it to me. It surprised me at first, but after a second I'd begun to smile, having started giggling quietly. My _mother_ , on the other hand, _nearly screamed_ from the other room, startling us both.

With our meal out of the way, we put the dish in the sink and left for our bedroom. It hadn't taken us long to strip down to boxers, what we normally slept in, even if we'd always slept together, and we crawled onto my bed and got comfortable. Mitch was curled up into me, as usual, and I had him wrapped caringly in my arms, a blanket draped lightly over us as we'd slowly drifted off to sleep.

The next day at school, we caught up with our friends, Preston and Vikk, and weren't afraid to show off our new relationship. In fact, considering Mitch was just slightly popular when it came to his looks and attitude in general, his fan girl's went _crazy_ seeing us kiss! They absolutely thought we were _perfect_ together. Honestly, that day was one of the best school days of my life, though I don't know how Mitch felt about it, because he left his hoodie at my house-. I'm kidding; I bet he'd agree with me.

Well, um… Yeah, that's how my turning went, so, uh… I guess I can just pick up where I left off. It's actually… It hurts me.


	7. Chapter 6:

**(REALLY long chapter this time! XP.)**

 **Chapter 6:**

Like I said last time, this part of my story hurts me. Greatly. If I start crying- just ignore it, alright? It's just… It's just hard for me, okay?! Anyways…

After school, Mitch was supposed to walk home with me. Well, he didn't. In fact, he and I had both been very surprised to see his parent's car in the parking lot. Mitch still hadn't told them yet, seeing as he hadn't gotten a chance, and he'd forgotten to call them, so we just figured, you know, maybe they were worried or something. So Mitch asked me to wait on him so he could talk with his parents. I'd agreed. I wish I hadn't…

Mitch had left my side and made his way to his parent's car. His mother's window rolled down, and they'd begun to talk. I couldn't see Mitch's face, nor could I hear them, so I'd focused my attention on the side mirror. Just in time, I'd caught the words "soul" and "mate" leave Mitch's lips, and had smiled; happy he wasn't keeping it a secret from them. Mitch hadn't ever really liked his parents. They weren't always the most… They weren't always fair about stuff, is what I'm trying to say. So in turn, Mitch didn't tell them much about his personal life. But, uh… Mitch's happy face turned shocked in the blink of an eye, and… And…

I'm sorry, I need a minute… Yes, I'm crying- this is just hard for me, okay?! Sorry, um… Where was I?

Mitch's happy face had turned to shock… And- and I don't know what happened, but Mitch just looked horrified- and- and they forced him in the car and just drove off. He'd looked to me as they left, this pleading look had been on his face- I- I didn't know what to do at the time, so… So with my ears worriedly pinned I… I mean, I figured I could get my parents to take me to Mitch's house, so I'd just started running. I ran the whole way home that day. And as soon as I'd walked through the door, out of breath- without Mitch, my parents had become concerned. I'd asked for a ride to Mitch's house and they willingly drove me. Even if I'd insisted on them leaving after dropping me off, they'd refused, they had been just as concerned as I was. They did, however, let me go to the door alone.

So I'd walked up to the door… and knocked. Cars were in the driveway, so it wasn't a matter of them not being home- simply the matter of them not answering. I'd knocked again. The second time, the door opened, Mitch's mother standing there.

Now, Mitch's parents weren't ever very fond of me- they wanted Mitch to have normal friends- they didn't want him to have a " _nasty creature_ " as a friend, as Mitch once quoted for me. Mitch's mother didn't look happy, as per the usual with my arrival at their house, but that day… Something had been off- it hadn't been the same and that worried me. I could _feel_ the tension. I couldn't even mutter a hello before she'd spoken up.

"Mitchell's grounded- he can't play right now." Her voice had been bitter, so I didn't pry for information. In fact, I'd already had an idea over _why_ he was grounded anyway.

"Is it because he didn't call-?"

" _Sure_." And after that, she'd slammed the door in my face. Mitch's parents, until that day, had never been so cruel to me. Even if they hadn't liked me _at all_ , they'd still say hello, goodbye, and all of those different formalities. My ears had pinned and I just couldn't get myself to move- and even if I'd wanted to knock again, my parents had been waiting on me and they'd always taught me to not bug someone if they didn't welcome me inside their home the first time. So going against my gut, I'd turned and started back to my parent's car.

The drive home was a quiet one, no one talking. I'd tried calling Mitch. It had gone straight to voicemail. When we'd gotten home, I'd dragged my bag upstairs to my room and set it down by my desk, like I always did. Then, Mitch's familiar scent had suddenly hit me like a train. So, turning back towards the door, I stood there. Can you believe I'd forgotten all about Mitch's hoodie? Well, his hoodie was basically drenched in his scent- his _heavenly_ scent. So, what happened? I ran to it, took it off the hook on the wall, and just started sobbing into it.

It had taken no time at all for my mother to hurry in and engulf me in a hug, having started to hush me and assure me everything was fine. We'd both fallen to the floor, Mitch's hoodie between us both, and I just _knew_ something hadn't been right with Mitch. Something had to have been wrong, right? That's what my gut had been screaming at me, but still, I ignored it and had just assured myself he was fine. I mean, I still had my colors, right? As long as I had those, he was fine- that's what I'd repeated in my head _over_ and _over_ again.

After a while, I'd grown tired, so my face still stained with tears and Mitch's hoodie having still been in my grasp, I'd fallen asleep in my mother's arms- even if it was still early in the afternoon. I'd woken up around 8pm that night, in bed cuddled up with Mitch's warmed hoodie. So, hungry, after taking a deep breath and filling my lungs with Mitch's scent, I'd gotten up and had made my way downstairs. My parents had just smiled at me, but I just ate and went straight to bed again. They hadn't questioned me.

The next day at school, I'd expected to see Mitch there. When he didn't show up, I'd instantly known something was wrong. So I spent the entire day worrying- no matter what class it was- no matter how focused I'd needed to be. Mitch was the only thing on my mind. I had my fighting class after school that day, so my parents had drove me, and I immediately perked up when I saw Mitch's parent's car in the parking lot. Having run into the building after that, psyched beyond belief, I'd quickly found the class and looked around. What had confused me was the fact that I hadn't see Mitch anywhere. So, having passed his parents on the way in here, I walked over to our teacher, who was reading as he waited for the rest of the class to show up.

"Yes Jerome?" He'd asked me with a smile.

"Where's Mitch…?"

"His parent's just removed him from the class, why? Is something wrong?" Those few words had shattered my world. Mitch, removed from the _only_ class he'd aced without need of studying or practicing? After not showing up for school? He wasn't sick, and even grounded his parents still sent him to _all_ classes, even after school ones, no matter if I was there or not. "Jerome?" I'd just stared him down, ears having pinned again, and after concerning my teacher majorly, I turned and just left. My parents were quick to follow me.

Now, understand that parents were always welcome to stay and watch. Why Mitch's parents never stayed was because, for the first part, Mitch was always staying over at my house, or we could drive him home, and also because their jobs came first. Even before Mitch. Sad, right…?

I left the small gymnasium we'd always gathered in for our class and went straight for the door. I wasn't doing it- I wouldn't participate in that class with Mitch not there. I mean, sure, when he'd get sick I'd participate, but other than that, no. My mother had called out to me, as well as my father, but I didn't answer- I couldn't. I had been on the verge of a breakdown and hadn't wanted to start crying there. In the car, fine. At home, fine. Anywhere else, no. So, that's what I did. I went straight out the doors and straight into the car, and _then_ broke down.

After a few days had past, I'd questioned my teacher over why Mitch hadn't been showing up. His parents hadn't been answering the door, and grounded, Mitch wasn't allowed to even leave his room unless it was for a meal, so… She'd told me he'd been withdrawn from the school. Without any other questions, without any warning or any reason, I bolted. I left all of my stuff there and just ran- I ran straight to the principal's office and asked her the same thing. So, after a quick search on her computer, she'd confirmed my teachers claim. Having been unable to control my emotions at that point, I'd broken down crying _right_ in front of her. Of course, that had concerned her, and she offered to call my parents. I ended up going home that day, no questions asked. I requested to go to Mitch's house. So we went, like the other days I'd asked.

That day, however, there was a "For Sale" sign in their front yard. Boxes all over the yard. And a moving van. There were people all over the place, transporting boxes into the large moving van, and by the looks of it, they were nearly finished packing. So I'd jumped out of the car, ears already pinned, and just stood there. Mitch's parents had spared me one slightly disgusted glanced before acting like I wasn't there. Mitch had been nowhere in sight. Carefully, my hands over my chest, I'd walked over to Mitch's parents, who immediately looked annoyed at my presence.

"What is it?" His father had snapped at me.

"What's going on-?"

"What does it look like?"

"… Where's-?"

"Mitchell is grounded." Mitch's mother informed me, _again_.

"But… But where is he-?"

"With his aunt."

"Could I say-?"

"He isn't here; he's already at the new house. You need to leave." I had wanted to ask where they were moving, but… Instead, I turned away and went back to the car. I mean, why would they tell me? The " _hideous_ " creature they didn't want in Mitch's life? Mitch's soul mate…? When I got home, I went back to my room, pulled out my phone, and called Mitch. That time, it hadn't gone to voicemail. Instead, the little robotic voice had informed me that the number was invalid.

As you can believe, my heart had stopped. Mitch was moving. His parents hadn't told me- nor would they had I asked- where they were going. I no longer had a cell phone number that could reach him. He wouldn't be at school or in my- _our_ fighting class. And all over the simple fact, that we were soul mates.

For the next week, I'd cried. I cried everywhere I went- the study- the kitchen- my own _bedroom_. I couldn't take a step in our house without crying my heart out, and all because of Mitch. Ever since we moved in, Mitch had been there. Since the beginning- since before I could _remember_ , Mitch was just _there_. And then… He wasn't. And the last I'd seen of him was a scared face _pleading_ for my help.

I'd stopped going to school, I'd dropped out of the fighting class, and I'd basically given up on life itself. I wouldn't eat. I wouldn't sleep. I'd stay awake all night, every night, with no food and very little water. I quickly began to drop weight and my parents were very scared for me. Preston and Vikk had dropped by a few times to check on me. They'd tried to talk to me, to help me… But I'd just turned my back to them and didn't even mutter a word. I wouldn't speak. I would just lie there, by myself, in my dark, silence room, curled up with Mitch's hoodie. At the time, no thought had crossed my mind about my actions. In fact, at the time, I hadn't been thinking at all. My mind wasn't coping, and my body felt physically hurt. Almost as if I was dying. And honestly… At the time, I wanted to die.

So then, after a week of crying, and then the next week full of utter silence, my parents finally managed to sit me down at our kitchen table, and feed me. My mother had even made fish. Neither of them ate, they just sat there, worried about my well being and nearly _begging_ me to eat. So, eventually I'd picked up the fork and taken a small bite. A small bite had led to more slow intakes of food. And after a while, I'd finished. Wanting to be alone again, I'd stood, having started to make my way towards the stairs, but then, I'd sudden felt nauseas. So I bolted for the downstairs bathroom, had thrown the door open, and just started vomiting. That's what did it for my parents.

After that, we were all packed up and ready to move back to GreatWood in 2 short days. My parents figured the house was too unhealthy for me at the moment, so, we'd gone back home. And throughout the entire car ride, I'd worn Mitch's hoodie- the one thing of him I still had. The one piece of him that his parents let me keep…

My parents put me back into school in our hometown, and the day after we'd arrived, I was sent to school. Everyone had been extremely happy I was back, though they'd quickly picked up on my depressed state. I wouldn't talk. I wouldn't answer questions- not even when I got called on. I wouldn't eat. I wouldn't do my work. I wouldn't fight back in our fighting class. And what had scared everyone the most was when I walked through the door one day, and passed out.

I'd woken up- not at school, but in the small nearby hospital. They'd explained that I'd passed out from lack of sleep, low blood pressure, hypoglycemia, and lack of food. I had low blood pressure from dehydration and lack of sleep. I had hypoglycemia, low blood sugar, from excessive physical activity and lack of food. My lack of sleep was not only caused by my low blood sugar, but also by the fact I'd just lie there curled up with Mitch's hoodie, too lost in my empty mind to sleep. Oh, and me not eating had simply been caused by depression, but the doctor didn't mention that to me, I just knew.

The doctors had spoken to my parents before I was sent home. My doctor had not only increased my calorie intake, but had given my parents a bottle of sleeping pills, seeing as they'd mentioned why I wasn't sleeping. I was to drink plenty of water to help keep hydrated, and I had to start eating regularly again, even if I had to start with different liquid foods. Whatever worked. It was around lunch when we'd left the hospital, indicating I'd been there all morning. I wasn't sent back to school, however, but had been brought home to rest up a bit, even if all I'd been doing was lying on the couch. The rest of the day, tons of people kept showing up to check on me, seeing as everyone's connected in GreatWood. People would come into the house, say hello, talk with me for a bit, though I hadn't had much to say, so they'd leave as soon as they came.

For the 3 weeks following the scare I'd given everyone, I'd worked on my grades and had tried to start eating again, for the sake of my parents. Solids though, they weren't doing me any good, so literally every meal I ate- I was drinking from a cup. And sleep? Well, considering my parents were giving me sleeping pills, it had been perfectly fine. Minus all the nightmares I kept having. It got better though. Eventually, I had been able to eat _some_ solids, and sleep on my own accord. I would still sleep with Mitch's hoodie, but it was… Bearable, I guess you could say. It took a while for my body to readjust to what most would have called normal, but eventually, I got there. I had still been depressed however, that was clear to everyone. But I'd talk, and smile, and laugh, I just wasn't… I hadn't been all there, is what I mean.

"When soul mates find each other, one of two things can happen. They can fall in love, and live together despite what the world throws at them- despite all the odds. They'll be happy and content with life, even if it's them against the world." My teacher had explained during a lesson one day. It had been about 6 months after the incident.

"Or, sometimes they can grow to hate each other. Sometimes, soul mates actually aren't meant to live happily- and they move on. If that happens, the despising souls tend to live alone, content with a life lacking love." She'd continued.

"However, when soul mates of any kind are separated for long durations of time, both partner's will start to notice that their colors are once more beginning to fade- to dull, in a sense. That's caused by a soul lacking it's other half, despite having come into contact with said half upon or after turning. When this happens, the soul mates or despising souls will slowly lose their colors once again, not permanently, but temporarily. The colors will fade until nearing a perfect grayscale, and will stop before the soul mates completely lose all color. Both soul mates will stay like that until reuniting, in a sense. And if they never reunite, they'll still have their colors."

"Mrs. Allison?"

"Yes Lilith?"

"I think Jerome's upset about something." I had been upset. Why wouldn't I have been? After 6 months of coping with lose, 6 months of healing- after all the time it took me to finally have a sense of normality in my life again… I'd just been reminded that my pride and joy- my other half, was missing. Not only that, but that I'd once again begin to lose the only thing that reminded me my other half was still out there. The one thing that kept me going day to day. And what had been worse was the fact that my colors had already begun dulling.

I had never cried around the others about what had happened- hell, they didn't even know I'd found my soul mate! Much less that we were ripped apart. So I had just sat there, in the middle of class, silently sobbing into my hands. I hadn't gone home early that day, despite how much I'd wanted too. All of the sad apologizes I'd received, despite everyone's lack of information, hadn't helped, unfortunately.

After school, I'd gone home. I'd done my homework, and had then met up with my friends, as always. Though that time, everyone had seemed worried. And said worry, had been directed towards me. One of my friends sniffed at the air. So had a few others.

"Jerome?"

"Yes…?" My voice had been dull and emotionless by that point in the dreadful day.

"Why is the human scent on you stronger today? I mean, you've always had this faint human scent, and it's always been fitting, but its stronger today- why?" I hadn't replied, just looked to the ground, embarrassed. It'd been somewhat funny to me though too, I thought Mitch's scent had faded to the point where my own scent masked it. I thought it was gone. Apparently, I'd been wrong, and it'd just been pointed out to me… After I'd walked through nearly the entire town wearing the only thing I held precious to me. Another friend stepped closer to me, sniffing at me more directly rather than sniffing at the air. She'd blinked.

"It's the hoodie."

"Where'd you get that?" Another friend had questioned. At that point, I'd become unresponsive. The topic had soon been changed, despite my large group's thirst for knowledge.

About 6 months later, on my 15th birthday, was when everything started going downhill again. A whole year. The anniversary of our unity. The anniversary of our loss of the other. The day I dreaded most. It was the day I disappeared, despite the small celebration my parents had thrown for me. It was the day I spent thinking, alone in a blissful solitude. How? I'd run into the forest. It had always been so peaceful there- alone. The quiet, rushing water. The overgrown roots. Shaded, the sun barely seeable within the dense canopy overhead. Yes, it'd truly been peaceful there- and it wasn't the last I saw of the blissful place I'd found. After my 15th birthday, I'd begun to spend a lot of time in the forest's isolation.

The worst of my 15th hadn't bore its fangs, however. A month later, mating season had started. For bacca's, mating season didn't start affecting you until a year after your turning. Until you're 15. As you can imagine, my life had become a living hell at that point. Unfortunately, having met my soul mate, the pull was stronger towards me. With my soul mate nowhere around… I'm sure you get the picture. I'd spent the next week in agonizing, torturous pain. Unfortunately, I was left to deal with said pain _alone_.

How long have I been ranting? I'm sorry… Uh… I need a moment, if you don't mind- I just… I-… My head just hurts, let's continue.


	8. Chapter 7:

**Chapter 7:**

So, where was I…? Oh, yeah, I remember now.

My life honestly hadn't been worth living. However, with my colors faded or not, I still had hope. Of course, it seemed near impossible at the same time. We'd not had contact in… 4 straight years. For 4 years, I'd hoped. Cried. Mourned. For 4 years I'd wished I could see him again.

When I'd been 16, I'd passed my driver's test flawlessly, as did most of my friends. However, even with the access to a car, I hadn't moved away or anything. Our little empire was still my home and would be for many years to come. Though, I did leave _one_ time. I'd decided to travel back to the city, and considering we still had our house, it wasn't a struggle. I'd taken some stuff, and after arriving, I'd left the house and made my way down the street. I'd pulled out my phone, and dialed up an old number that the owner probably thought I'd forgotten long ago. Sure enough, the owner of said number had answered nearly instantly.

"Jerome!" A short conversation took place, activity beginning to form down the street. Soon enough, I'd been hugged nearly to death by none other than Preston, and Vikk shortly after. Oh, and Rob as well. Rob? Well apparently, by that time Preston had found his soul mate. Vikk hadn't, but he'd seemed happy nonetheless. They'd begun to bombard me with question after question. Eventually a silence had fallen over our small little group. I'd known why. They had as well.

"… How's Mitch?" Vikk had finally spoken the one thing on everyone's mind.

"… Alive." I'd muttered back sadly. They all nodded. Now Rob didn't know who Mitch was, but he'd seen pictures, and they'd told him what had happened. He knew he was my soul mate. He knew we'd been ripped apart.

"It's funny, you know?" Preston had chuckled. "It's like I can almost _smell_ him." Vikk had given Preston the weirdest look, as well as Rob.

"How? He hasn't been here in years!" Vikk declared.

"Well…" Everyone had quickly looked to me. "I mean… I have his hoodie." Reaching towards the small bag I'd brought with me, I'd pulled the hoodie out. We'd all just sat there, them smiling sadly at it, while I just held it in my lap. "It's funny…" I'd cracked a weak smile, bringing the hoodie to my nose and carefully inhaling the strange, mixed scents. "I can't smell him anymore."

I'd spent a week with them, hanging out, catching up, but eventually I did need to go home. After all, I had a job. I'd just had so much spare time, that, why not? I'd still had time to keep up with school and do all the things I'd need to do, of course, it hadn't ever been a problem for me. My boss had even assured me that, once I'd graduated high school, I could work their full time if I'd want too. I'd said goodbye to all of my friends, them asking me to come back anytime. I said I would, and told them to come and visit me sometimes too. They'd said they would.

Upon getting home, I was, as usual, swarmed by my friends. I'd stopped by the house, dropped my stuff back off, and had then gone to work.

Hmn… There isn't really much to tell. How about we skip to when I turned 18?

My 18th birthday was definitely interesting. With money earned over the course of nearly 3 years, I'd saved up enough to by myself a nice looking car, even if I wouldn't use it much. I mean, I couldn't rely on my parents for everything, right? The car was black and sleek.

It was a very nice car- I still have it. See? Out front? Yeah, that one. Mitch? Uh… He, uh, got rid of his car… Um- anyway.

I still had the same job, and most of my attention had been focused on the test we'd all need to take for graduation. However, I still found time, even when juggling with my job and my school work, to slip away from everything and simply relax in blissful isolation. My life had a sense of normality, and I wanted to keep it that way. One day, however, while my friends and I were all hanging out inside, studying, and a knock sounded at the door. My parents answered it, and suddenly, Preston's grinning face had appeared in the doorway. My friends had been confused, though I, on the other hand, had shot from my seat and had tackle hugged him.

"Hey now, don't kill him!" Vikk's voice had sounded, a laugh having followed.

"Yeah, we don't exactly have insurance on that!" Rob declared, both of them in the doorway as well. Vikk looked at Rob like he was stupid.

"Yes, actually, you do have insurance on that."

"Oh."

"What are you guys even doing here? Don't you have to study- won't you be graduating soon?" I demanded, overly happy.

"Well." I helped Preston back to his feet. "You're birthday's coming up, and we thought we'd surprise you! I hope you don't mind- I told them we should've called, but they wouldn't listen and-." I'd cut Preston off with a chuckle, shaking my head.

"I told you to come whenever, didn't I? But uh, my friends and I are all studying, we have a test coming up soon and we all need to pass it."

"You have a large group of friends- and I thought our group was large, like holy hell Jerome!" Rob laughed. The sound was merry- I'd never heard Rob truly laugh like that until then. At that, I began to do introductions, seeing as my friends had been giving me a look that scream: "Why have humans invaded your house and where the hell did they come from?" They'd all been smiling though. After all the introductions were finished, I'd sat back down, continuing immediately with our studies while my city friends had just sat there and listened, not seeming to care and just happy. My mother had brought in a bunch of different snacks as we all had a fun time together, and when the clock struck 8, we'd set aside everything and had gone outside to have some fun.

We'd run around, play lots of different games, just do what we always did! We'd met up with some of the younger kids in the village and they'd joined in on the fun. Just how friendly everyone had been with each other, gender not mattering and age not a problem had surprised my city friends. I mean, the city was nothing like this at all! The next few days were interesting, considering my parents had insisted that Preston, Vikk, and Rob all go to school with us. So, temporarily, they were transferred into our school. It wasn't a problem, and they'd been psyched to hear about the fighting class.

By the time my 18th birthday did roll around, I'd been somewhat happy for once. Though, despite having been happy, when my parents brought out my cake, candles lit as everyone had begun to sing, the only thing in my mind had been my wish. The same wish I'd made ever since the incident. And with my only wish in the world on my mind, I'd blown out all 18 candles. What happened next had surprised me, as well as my parents, friends, and everyone else. My phone, from its home on the kitchen counter, began to ring. I'd never used it once since Mitch had disappeared, besides when I went to the city, _a year ago_. Ignoring that knowledge, I'd answered the phone, not knowing the caller ID.

"Hello…?"

"J-Jerome…" The voice had been scared. Cold. Hurt. Broken. "J-Jerome, I need you…"

"Where are you?" I'd quickly picked up a piece of paper and a pen, waiting. Nothing. "… Hello?"

"P-p-parker w-way and T-time a-avenue…"

"What city?" I'd demanded immediately, writing down the street addresses. From the information, at the time, I'd just pieced together he'd meant "the corner of".

"M-manama…"

"Alright, I'm coming. Stay put and stay warm!" And out the door I'd went, the phone between my shoulder and ear, my keys in hand. I'd always kept blankets in my car, just in case of an emergency- and _damn_ was I glad I had.

"Jerome…?" Having ignored my mother, I hopped into my sleek- _fast_ car. It kicked to life with a quiet, beautiful purr, a sound I didn't hear often. I'd made quick eye contact with my parents, who were standing in the open doorway, all of my friends behind them, watching with the same look. Confusion. With no reason as to why I was suddenly leaving, I'd pulled out of the driveway, and left- heading Northeast instead of South, indicating I wasn't going to Spawn City.

"Mitch, are you still there?" Nothing had replied to me, causing my foot to slam on the gas as soon as I'd hit open, empty, desolated road. "Mitch, answer me!" And still, nothing. I'd easily gotten into 6th gear, and quickly at that. My speed? 137mph on a 75mph road. What? I'd been worried! Besides, no one was around anyways, it's not like I'd of hit someone!

My car ride was a rather long one, but I'd left around 6pm anyway, so there'd been plenty of daylight left! Well… 2 hours of it at least. Now, normally, it'd have taken… about 4 hours to get to Manama, driving at the speed limit at least. At my speed, I'd gotten there in about 2 hours and 45 minutes. Considering I hadn't known the snowy cities layout, I'd pulled up to some dude and asked for directions. Having received them after some hesitation, I'd taken off again, slowly, of course. The streets Mitch had given me had been ones located back behind the heart of said city, deeming him even deeper into the cold. It'd been snowing enough to the point I could barely see, a blizzard, but I'd found the streets nonetheless. So, having hopped out of my car, protected from the cold by my fur, I'd started straight for the bright, glowing box, which I took to be a phone booth. Most phone booth's contained maps, so at first I'd wanted to use it to make sure I'd been in the right place, just in case, but then, I'd seen the small, curled up man inside said box, and immediately recognized him.

I'd opened up the phone booth doors and brought Mitch into my arms bridal style, having held his cold, shaking, and ill looking form close. His breathing was jagged, quick and airy, almost as if he hadn't been able to breathe at all, and his eyes closed.

"J-Jerome-?"

"I'm here, you're alright now…" It had taken me barely any time at all to get Mitch into the passenger's seat of my car and wrapped up with a warm blanket, one that wasn't thin and didn't have any holes, like the one he'd previously been using. Getting into the driver's side, I'd nearly slammed the door and immediately turned up the heat, having started up the car as the engine quietly purred to life, and left the snowy environment.

Mitch remained quiet the whole ride home, and every time I'd glanced to him, he'd been asleep. Fast asleep- almost as if he'd not gotten any sleep. It had taken me a bit longer to drive us back, at most 3 hours, but nothing more. Having parked my silent car, no one had swarmed around us; no one had noticed us arriving. It had become dark, being a bit after 10pm and all and I must admit, our bacca empire had always had this magical look to it when all the lights had gone out- especially on starry nights, like that one had been.

Not wanting Mitch to walk, I'd got out, Mitch starting to wake up from our halted position as I'd made extra care to not slam the door. I'd opened Mitch's door, scooping him up in my arms as he'd leaned against me, cuddled up to my chest slightly as I'd quietly shut his door too. I'd opened the front door, light having bombarded us. Though I was positive every one of my friends had heard the door, the only people who addressed me were my parents, and let me tell you- they were purely shocked to see Mitch. And worried. Very worried. I'd quickly walked around them and into the living room, where all of my friends had been waiting. The people on the smaller couch had stood up, moving out of my way and allowing me to lay Mitch where they'd once been sat. Mitch had winced, which worried me.

Having left him shivering on the couch, I'd rushed to the bathroom and grabbed a small first aid kit, returning. My bacca friend's had surrounded my poor soul mate, staring down at him, curious. Not only were _they_ surrounding Mitch, but Preston, Rob, and Vikk had all mimicked their actions, or, most likely, had caused their actions.

" _Move!_ " At my scream, everyone had jumped, including my parents. I don't scream. As they'd all moved out of my way, I'd fallen to my knees besides my soul mate, having been worried as I tried to sit him up. Mitch had gone completely slack in my arms, eyes closed, the only movement having been his faint shivering. "Mitch…?" My voice had been quiet, mumbled. Taking away an arm, I'd placed the back of my hand to his head, and my ears had nearly instantly pinned. "Mom…" Of course I'd been scared. He'd been as cold as ice. I'd taken his hand- his _numb_ hand into mine as my mother had quickly come over, feeling his forehead like I had.

"Jerome, take him to the bathroom and strip him down, he's freezing- honey, go get some of your old clothing for Mitch to wear- Preston darling, can you go get the extra blankets we gave you boys? Mitch needs them _now_." As I'd shut the bathroom door, my mother's voice had become faint. Of course I hadn't stayed to hear her rant, I was told what to do and that's all I'd wanted to hear. I'd pulled off Mitch's shirt with ease, but had stopped to stare. Bruises, all sorts of blacks and blues, had adorned my poor soul mates body- nearly every _inch_ of it. Not only that, but cuts, all over his chest and arms. Some had faded; others had been fresher and newer than the rest. And my dear shivering soul mate, right then and there, had begun to cry.

"I'm so sorry…" Mitch had breathed. "I promised you I'd never do it and I still did it- I- I- I'm just hideous and disgusting a-and I don't deserve you-!" I'd cut him off right then and there, having kissed him dead on the lips as gently, yet as passionately as possible. The kiss only lasted a second and when I'd pulled away, my shivering, shocked soul mate had been sitting there, wide eyed with a quivering bottom lip, staring me directly in the eye.

"You're beautiful…" And with those two words, Mitch had continued to cry. I'd continued to strip his numbed body down, not saying a word until the bathroom door had opened. It had been my father.

"Here you are, they're probably loose, but they're dry nonetheless."

"Thanks dad." My dad had smiled, closing the door as I'd looked back to Mitch. We'd got him all dressed, but still, even with the dry clothing he'd been shivering. I lifted him bridal style in my arms, having left the bathroom to find Preston waiting with blankets. As well as Mitch's hoodie. We'd gone straight to my room, had set Mitch on my bed, and then had begun to wrap him up with the blankets. Mitch welcomed the heat, and had buried himself into my chest, having mumbled something to me about sleep. So I'd lied him down, pulled the comforter over his body, and kissing his forehead goodnight. But as I'd begun to leave with Preston, Mitch had called my name.

"I don't want to be alone…" Mitch had whispered, a pleading look plastered to his shaking form. So without question, I'd returned to his side, crawled under the comforter, and pulled him to me, not long after falling asleep with my soul mate pulled close.

I got Mitch back and everything seemed… Great- perfect even. Everything suddenly felt whole again! I've dragged on for quite a while, haven't I…? I'm sorry about that, I try not too! A few weeks later Mitch was doing better, trust me. But uh… A few weeks later, mating season started up, so… It was exciting, honestly. My sweet, submissive little Mitchell. _God,_ his name rolls off my tongue like silk. Oh god… I, uh… I need to go take some pills, I don't feel good; just give me a few minutes please…


	9. Chapter 8:

**(Sorry for disappearing, but I explained what's happening on my Quotev, my most recent Journal, so... Yeah, in case you were wondering...)**

 **Chapter 8:**

I'm okay now… I think… It doesn't matter right now though, so let's just continue please…

In 3 years time, Mitch and I had graduated high school, and both had jobs. We were saving up money, obviously, and we were simply happy to be together. Mitch had insisted he'd get the better paying job than me, and I was perfectly fine with whatever job he wanted to have for himself. To tell you the truth, he was self employed. He split his time wisely between spending time with me and all of our friends, hunting, and creating computer software from our living room. Rob and Preston had officially moved out into the empire with us, living in an apartment nearby, and Vikk and Lachlan- who turned out to be soul mates, had got their own apartment as well. Those 4 all had jobs that varied in variety.

Mitch and I 21 now, Vikk and Lachlan 20, Rob 23 and Preston also 21, we were all happy. I still worked at the coffee shop I'd been working at for the last… How long had it been by that point? I can't remember… everything's kind of… foggy. Anyway, everyone was happy. My parents had moved out of the empire and back into the city, leaving the house for Mitch and myself. We were extremely close. My heart had always felt heavy when Mitch wasn't around, and I'd always worried about him when he went off hunting, all alone. But sure enough, he always returned, not a scratch and perfectly safe each and every time. He went hunting for fresh food and not just for us either. He sold off most of what he killed for some extra money on the side. Every morning, I saw Mitch come into the coffee shop, and take time out of his day to order a cup of coffee, and talk with me. Every day- despite having fresh coffee at the house each morning, he'd come and visit me.

Now, my parents came to visit rather frequently. They came during mating season, obviously, and despite my arguing they'd still wanted Mitch and me to have the master bedroom. So we'd taken it and they'd taken the guest room. The house was big enough for 7 or 8 people to live in, but even still, they left it to us. Our sex life was… interesting, to say the least. And exciting. Sometimes I topped, other times I bottomed. It all depended on how we felt. I mean, of course it wasn't _just_ during mating season. We're romantics! I'm sorry, this isn't appropriate, uh…

Well, um, Mitch made much more than I'd ever thought he did. I'd known he had a separate bank account from our shared funds; it was his way of making sure the money he made could be tracked and accounted for accordingly. He'd also had that extra cash he'd stolen from his parents, before I'd gotten to him again, but all of that was in our shared funds. Or that's what I'd thought.

One day, Mitch had come into the coffee shop. He'd already stopped in, and had probably just gotten back from a hunting trip. Mitch had looked so pale, and had come inside, approaching me. I'd been wiping down a table, and had given him a smile, though it was crooked seeing as I'd been confused. As he'd gotten closer, I'd realized he wasn't only pale, but had tears in his eyes. Of course I'd stopped what I was doing. I'd hurriedly embraced him and dragged him towards a booth, having sat him down. I had let him cry into my shoulder quietly, hushing him and waiting for him to calm down. Eventually, he had, and had pulled away from me slightly, staring up at me.

"What's wrong?" Mitch placed his head on my shoulder, relaxing somewhat as I'd waited.

"I saw some woman today… Out on my hunt. She… She said that I was going to die, that I don't have much time left… So when I got home, I looked her up and-… and-…"

"And…?" I gently whispered.

"And she turned out to be a famous psychic that's never wrong!" He'd whispered, his grip on me tensing. "Every case, whether good or bad, she's always been right! She told some dude he'd die a tragic death and he died to his own horse mauling him to death!" Mitch had then pulled back slightly, shaking and staring into my eyes. He'd looked so scared. I'd felt just as scared. My soul mate, destined to die? I'd shaken my head somewhat, not believing it.

"Why would she even be out there? In the forest where you hunt?" I'd demanded.

"She was travelling from Grommith to Manama, she doesn't use roads…" I'd watched the tears begin to cascade down his soft, beautifully sculpted cheeks. "She loves the wilderness…" Hearing this, I'd once more grabbed him and pulled him close. Why Mitch? Why _my_ Mitch? After all the shit we'd already been through, that had been my only question. _Why?_ After struggling without each other for 4 straight years, after dealing with Mitch's recovery and the loss of our colors, we now had to deal with Mitch's pronounced death? _WHY?_ It hadn't been fair! We'd just wanted a normal life- that's it!

However, despite our worrying, it had gotten better. Mitch had stopped his hunting trips until regaining his confidence, and we were both very cautious over our actions. Our sex life, however, was still as carefree as it always had been… I don't know why I'm telling you that.

Our friends had always been there for us, even when it was tough, even through thick and thin, they were there. We had all been happy, and everything was great! Mitch continued to make loads off of his software. Large and small companies alike had all looked to hire him! In fact, one time, when my father and mother stopped by to visit, my dad mentioned that his _boss_ would like to meet Mitch. The man behind the software. Mitch had denied everyone and everything offered to him. He didn't want to be far away from me, not at all. He had wanted to stay there, in the empire, and just live the way he wanted. So that's what he did.

About, per say, 6 months later, Mitch had no fear of his determined death. He never thought of it, and never mentioned it. Our lives had finally seemed to take a turn for the better! But, then one day during work, Mitch showed up. Vikk and Preston had already been there, drinking coffee and catching up. Rob and Lachlan had showed up with Mitch. At everyone's arrival, I had come to a halt, and had stared at Mitch, confused once again. He had been smiling. Preston and Vikk had gone to their boyfriends, greeting them as Mitch had approached me. I had given him a light smile, though the grin on his face was very apparent.

I remember Mitch taking my hands, and pulling me close, gently kissing me as though it were the last time I'd ever see him. Though worried, I'd gratefully returned the passion between us. Though soon, after the silence had settled upon us, I listened to his blessed voice as it stated the words I still to this day cherish.

"Jerome, I am so, so happy with you. You make me complete. So, will you be mine? Forever?" He had fallen to one knee, and it took less than a second for me to throw myself around him, tears having already started forming as I had continued to mutter my response until being hushed by him softly. The ring he'd gotten was a beautiful white gold, with a crystal blue diamond upon it.

That… That was when he proposed… Uh… Uh- How about I skip to the wedding…?

The wedding is all a blur, though I do remember that it had been beautiful. As a bacca tradition, we'd married under a full moon, in a clearing Mitch thought perfect for the ceremony. He'd found it a while back, during hunting trips.

In the middle of the silent forest, my childhood friends and family all around us, we'd been promised to each other. We'd said our vows, and declared our love, and not soon later our lips had met in heated passion, our friends and family cheering merrily for us. Preston had been crying, Lachlan had gotten drunk, and Vikk was caught up in Lachlan's romance. Rob, had been the only sane one of us all, not drunk nor trying to seduce his other. Mitch and I, however, were all of those things. Drunk, lustful, and insanely romantic. My parents had decided that we'd better leave, one, before the forecasted rain hit, and two, before Mitch and I were on the ground, bare. You get the picture, I'm sure.

We'd awoke the next morning with throbbing headaches, Lachlan and Vikk in the guest room, bare, Rob and Preston in the other guest room, and my parents downstairs, as it was 10am. Mitch and I had been bare, the covers thrown around, and the room a disaster area, though being cuddled closely by the other had made all of that disappear somehow.

When we'd all finally regained our bearings, Mitch had suddenly sparked. His eyes had lit up at the sight of my rings, and he'd raced from the kitchen, confusing, yet intriguing us all. Soon, he'd returned with his arms behind his back.

"Close your eyes." He'd requested, and of course I'd listened. He'd taken my hand, and within my clutch had placed a diamond axe, flawless with a unique luster to it, my name engraved within the wooden handle. Not too long later, I saw the small chip it in. When I'd asked, Mitch had taken my engagement ring, and had been able to perfectly fit the diamond upon it into the missing chip. At that, I'd stood, and kissed the man. Not only for such a unique gift, but for the fact that, it'd been another tradition. Kissing? No. Giving a bacca – no matter the gender – an axe upon their marriage was the tradition, and he'd gone all out with it! I didn't even know he knew about that tradition!

"How much did that cost you?" Our passion had been broken by my mother's question, my vision shifting to her, before the thought crossed my mind as well. I'd shifted my vision back to Mitch, a worried look having crossed my features. From what I'd known, we were doing fine, but this, plus the wedding… How much _had_ it cost Mitch? To this day, I still don't know. Mitch had glanced around, everyone waiting for an answer before a light blush had crossed his cheeks, an awkward smile causing his lips to spread.

"I know people-."

"That doesn't answer the question." I'd responded. "Mitch, how much did it cost you? You didn't have to get me an axe – much less a diamond one. How much did it cost?" Mitch had just smiled at me, and had given me a quick kiss.

"I'm not telling." He'd determined. So, what had I done? I'd started going through our recites. Mitch always kept recites, and so did I. When I found nothing, I got on the computer and started looking through our most recent purchases, and went all the way back to when he'd proposed about… 5 months ago, by that time. Everyone had just stood around me, including Mitch, waiting to see the answer to our question. Eventually, however, I'd given up; determining he'd bought the axe with money from his second account, the one that the software purchases went through. He really hadn't wanted me to know. But, I'd come to rest with that.

For our honeymoon, we'd decided to just go back to Central, and spend time there. The bustling city was definitely interesting to be back in after so many years. We'd loved it though. Mitch, however… He had got much cockier, per say, since our last time here.

Anytime we had been crossing a street, Mitch would just make a dash for it, or he'd go slowly, but either way, I'd tell him to watch where he was going. Why? Because the thought of his death had still been lingering in my head, and now, in a place that's unfamiliar after all these years, it had brought that fear back to life. What if he had got hit by a car? What would I have done? Mitch didn't heed much to my warnings, though he was graceful to the point that he wouldn't get hit. However, that never settled my stomach over the matter.

We'd gone to restaurants, the movies, the parks… We would go swimming, or sometimes go and watch the kids fight in the fighting class. Surprisingly, the teacher who had taught us was still teaching! And he'd _recognized_ us! How he did, I'm unsure, but he did! It had been good to catch up with him, but I think the best part of our honeymoon… It would have to be sitting at the top of the office building my father worked in, outside where the wind would whip at our faces, and just watch the busy city below. We'd lay back and watch the clouds roll by, or lay on our stomachs with our heads dangled over the edge of the building, pointing at random things we'd find amusing. It may not sound like much, but the best part of it was simply being alone, in a quiet environment, where we could see everything, but be invisible to the world.

When we'd returned home, I'd brought up our future again. We'd sat down on the bed, Mitch's arms around me as I leaned on him, and we'd just talked. We'd talked about kids, how many we might want, when we should get one, what the gender should be. We'd talked about getting a new, smaller house, considering that house was just – despite the fact I grew up in it – too big. It'd just been the two of us, after all. We'd talked about… just, us. Where were we going, what was our future plan? We had planned everything out that night, or, finished planning everything out, I mean… And we were happy. For once… for once it felt like the world _wasn't_ against us- for once… for once…

I'm sorry, uh… I … I feel sick to my stomach... Just, uh… Give me some time, please… God, I probably look like the biggest crybaby to you… I just- I… I don't want to continue… Not right now… Pale? I-I'm not pale, I just… haven't got any sun in a while… What? Stuttering? I-I'm not stuttering! Mitch? He's, uh… upstairs sleeping- yeah, he's sleeping… He sleeping…


	10. Chapter 9:

**(Do you guys want the last chapter today? Well, if I get at least 15 people that ask for it, I'll post it!)**

 **Chapter 9:**

I… I want to finish this… No, I'm not going to lay down- I- I'm so close, just… God, I feel so sick…

Mitch and I had bought a new house, out in the wilderness, not too far from the empire. It'd taken us a bit to move all of our stuff over there – here… and considering we still wanted to be able to visit my childhood house, the boys had gone ahead and moved into it from their apartments, sharing the spacious home. However, they left the master bedroom alone, seeing as they wanted my parents – the rightful owners of the house – to have a room where they'd be more comfortable. At least we didn't have to worry over selling the place, I don't think…

Our house was - is - over on top of a medium sized hill, a cliff overhanging into the large river. As I said earlier, the scent of freshwater is… What did I say? I can't remember…

We had plans to adopt a little girl, and had even begun to go around and look through orphanages. Now, seeing as bacca's only give up their children when they die, it would have been extremely rare for us to find a little bacca to adopt. We'd settled on adopting a little girl. We didn't care about her background, who her ancestors were, who her parents were… we just wanted a someone we could love and care for, and someone who would return that to us. We'd begun travelling to different cities, in search of our perfect little child. Perfect is a strong word, however, but you got my point.

We'd started in Manama, searching the many orphanages, but had no luck there. The somewhat snowy city wore a light coat of snow, the crunch of it under your shoes… I don't know how to describe it. Mitch had been a bit on edge back in that city, where he was forced to grown up without me, but he got over his fear of the dreaded place eventually, with support from me. After Manama, we had then decided to make another trip back to Central. We'd stayed with my parents, who welcomed us with open arms, and even helped in a major part of Central's search, despite work. In Central, we'd visited so many different places – big and small – it was hard to keep track of! However, from what I can remember, we hadn't found the little girl we _knew_ had to be _somewhere_.

I know what you're thinking. It's not that we were being picky, understand. We just wanted a little girl, and we'd seen plenty! So many of them were beautiful, others strong, some both. We weren't going by certain specifics the child had, and we didn't have much for the child to live up too. Just as long as the child always tried their best was enough for us. We just… We'd wanted to explore all of our options before making a final say.

So, after Central, we'd gone to Amory. Amory served us no luck either, though it was fun being able to explore there! Neither of us had ever been, and my father had been one time before, but it was business, not pleasure. Besides, my mother and I had been back in the empire, so it's not like _I'd_ been any other time before. The city was new for me _and_ for Mitch- and Mitch had been to many, _many_ places! Down south by the ocean, the scent of sea salt fresh and always welcoming, the sound of squealing children and happy couples of all kinds, the freshest food you'd ever find – unless you were over in Waterworks – and the most welcoming place I'd ever been in my life! Well, other than the empire.

After Amory, we'd decided to try Pilchard; however we'd made a few stops along the way. Waterworks was a plains town, over nearby Amory, and I'd known of the place from the Harvest festival. They were the hosts, believe it or not. They may have been a small town, but most of the surrounding area was covered in vast, rich farmland, many farmers living around the town. The residents were all nice, like Cameron the smith, and her husband Ian. Then there was Hazel and her dog Blaze, and Blaze was apparently a shapeshifter, as I'd found out during our visit, and a very open one at that. There were others, but let's not dwell on that, okay…?

After Waterworks, we'd made our way to Central, then started west, towards Rainwell, the town outside of Pilchard. We stayed a night there, visited an orphanage, and then made the rest of the trek down south to Pilchard. In Pilchard, the air was moist and sticky, the heat exhausting, and the swampy town smelled of fish all over the place, though somehow it was all very… Perhaps I was just homesick at the time, but nonetheless, Pilchard was deinifitely interesting. When we'd visited a few orphanages there, we'd made our way back to Rainwell, and then began our travel north to our final destination. The drive – did I forget to mention we'd been driving everywhere? Oops, my bad. – wasn't very bad. The road was smooth, the environment quiet and peaceful. The trees were luscious shades of green, some beginning to change to the colors of fall; reds, yellows, oranges, browns, and purples here and there all decorating our drive further and further north. It wasn't until we were nearing the northwestern ocean that we'd finally made our way to Grommith.

Grommith was a flashy city. People were dressed up, movies and TV shows were produced here, and overall it was a rather expensive place to visit. However, I seemed to fit in rather well. Mitch? Not so much. Travelling the streets with Mitch in his hoodie, we'd see many men in business suits similar to mine. Woman wore dresses or suits to wherever they were heading, and the designs there had been so _different_ , I'd have never thought they'd existed! But sure enough, they did. Finding the orphanages we'd looked up had proved extremely difficult. However, the trouble had been completely worth it.

A girl, about the age of 8, we'd found. Her chin length, shaggy, untamable hair was a dark, rich chocolate brown, nearly the same shade as my fur; in fact I wouldn't have been surprised if her hair blended perfectly with my fur! Her eyes, however, were a bright, loving hazel, just like Mitch's… Her skin had been somewhat pale, as her dark hair had made it seem, and her smile was as wide as Mitch's had always been. She'd had fighting lessons from some of the guys there in the orphanage, and could protect herself fairly well. What was her weapon of choice? An axe.

That little girl, her name was Betty. She'd loved us! She didn't mind that we were soulmates, and the more we'd talked with her, the more in love we'd fallen. We'd left there glowing, though we'd have to fill out a load of paperwork for Betty to come home with us, so we'd decided to do it at the hotel.

Now, back to describing the absurd town. Even the _cars_ were showy! My car was very nice and simplistic, but "simplistic" was as abnormal as snow in the summer! Well, unless you're in Kilmarth. Snow in the summer is as normal as the sun! Well… Then again, Kilmarth rarely sees the sun- you get my point! The cars in Grommith were… They had accessories. Horns or ears or whiskers and other things of the sort were on some cars, designs so absurdly weird adorning others. Not many people obeyed the traffic laws either, but as long as you watched every step you took, you were fine.

Remember when I was telling you about Mitch and how he'd got cocky? Well, uh… He… He was cocky in every place we'd gone, though _there_ , he'd seemed overly cocky. Dashing across the street with such terrible timing that'd I'd kill him myself, or taking a stroll across a busy road. Honestly, I'm not surprised he hadn't been hit! But, anyway, enough of that, back to Betty…

After we'd finished the paperwork a few hours later, we'd left our hotel. We'd wanted to have her as our own as soon as possible. Betty Aceti Hughes. Doesn't that name sound wonderful…? Anyway… We were on our way back to the orphanage, and since it wasn't far away from the hotel, we'd been walking… And Mitch had suddenly remembered he'd forgotten something back in the hotel room. Something he had bought for Betty. So, after I warned him and pleaded with him to be extremely careful, I kissed him, and watched him make his way through the crowd, in the opposite direction I had been travelling.

I remember it all so vividly… The day had been warm, the smell of sea salt lingered in the air, as this was another ocean side city and the port wasn't too far from our hotel, and the sun was as bright as ever, in a cloudless pale blue sky that dared to hide its beauty. I remember the loud clatter of conversation, so many different things whirling through my ears at once before leaving my head again, causing a headache to form as quickly as we'd left the hotel. This city was hell compared to the empire, where it was quieter, more… Peaceful. I remember the buildings, tall in their pride and build of design that was flawless. I remember all of that.

And… I remember the sharp pains that had suddenly started in my chest, knocking the breath from my lungs as my vision had flickered gray.


	11. Epilogue:

**Epilogue:**

Oh love, darling you've truly gone insane.

"I remember mouthing Mitch's name… and running through a crowd of shocked, frozen people as fast as any animal… faster than what man would be able to run in the same amount of time…"

For no one is here to listen to your gracious stories.

"And… I remember getting to the front of the crowd, my vision still faltering- though my colors had begun to dim, becoming duller despite Mitch being in my arms…"

No one shall ever come to see of your face one last time.

"His eyes had barely been open, though his vision had shifted to me, and a weak smile had found this face…"

And for once, I regret being here, besides you as you choke… sob… mutter incoherent words…

"His skin had been paler, and the car besides us had been decorated with horns- and- and other things, bloodied at the points and splattered of the same red that had begun to pool all around the two of us…"

Besides you as you break down, unable to speak, barely the chance to breathe, your body numbing to all feeling, slowly- slowly now, love…

"And-… and-…"

I regret the treasured memories of which I had to burden you with, for my absence has truly tortured you, love… And for that, I regret leaving you, alone with these horrid feelings, no thoughts or presences able to drive them away from you now, love.

For your eyes are those of a man who has no meaning. No purpose or reason to live as of any longer. They dull now, love, and I am unfortunate enough to watch, as you did the same of my eyes.

"And he-… he-… Mitch-…"

Your body is not meant for this tortured loss, love. However, we knew that one day it would be upon us, the loss of myself. The women had declared it of us, and look where we have gotten now, love.

And now I watch as your quiet sobs once more rack your body, trembling now love- you sit and await. Wait of what you have done. What will become of you. But I, however, wish not to watch this, but must- I know I must. You are my everything, and every detail of which you commit must be clear to my empty head. So now, I wish to be besides you. However, I regret, love, that I am besides you now…

Besides you as you die.


	12. Author's Note:

Hey guys, Curse here! Thank you all _SO_ much for reading **Because Of You** , it means a lot to me! Did I kill your feels again?  
Of course, the song for **Because Of You** is... **Because Of You** , by: **Kelly Clarkson**. Oh, and I mentioned on Quotev that a certain line of that song was a spoiler for the story. Anyone guess it? NOPE! The line was: **I watched you die**. Sad, right?  
WELL! Okay, so I made a Journal on Quotev about different Book Idea's, and I've talked about it before, but now that I've finished this story, it's going to have a MAJOR part in what story I post _next_! If you want to influence what book I post next, then go check out the Journal, you'll have to find it among my many other journals, and you WILL need an account to comment, I believe, but yeah! Or, you could check it out, and post what book you want to vote for on Wattpad for me to see, or tell me on Fanfiction! You can vote more than once, but right now, the purely book that's in the lead is: **Lost In The Clouds** , and it's a MunchingUniverse shipping, so expect that to be the next book that comes out, HOWEVER, I'm planning on finishing **This Isn't Me** up next, so there's still time to influence the votes! Well, I mean, I plan on STARTING it up next, cause I stopped writing it... YEAH! So look forward for that, I _am_ rewriting the book, as I've mentioned, and I really hope you all enjoy it, it's my most popular book and it deserves to be recognized in it's new form, so please, go check out the new version, I only have a Prologue up, but still, give it some love, because a lot of people have been hating the fact I'm rewriting the book, and without that love, I don't think I can rewrite it. I gave it TONS of thought before deciding to rewrite it, and now people don't want me too, and- I'm sorry, I'm ranting.  
Thanks for reading, and I'll see you later!  
\- Ghost / Phantom / *IRNH*


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